All About Argyle

NO-ONE knows what to expect from the Pilgrims’ trip to Chesterfield this weekend better than the man who is plotting Argyle’s first back-to-back-to-back victory for two years.

John Sheridan began this season as manager of the Spireites, having enjoyed a bittersweet campaign with them in 2011-12 – winning the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy at Wembley proving scant compensation for suffering relegation.

John was given little chance to take Chesterfield up to League 1 for a second time in three seasons, being sacked after three games, but he bears few scars and is treating Saturday’s game as just another rung on the ladder which Argyle are using to climb away from relegation.

“I don’t have to prove anything,” he said. “I think I did an alright job there.

“Everyone can have their own opinion, but I’m only focused Plymouth and trying to get three points. It doesn’t really make any difference to me.

“Obviously it’s an important game for us. We’re going to try to get something from the game and win it, if we can.

“It’s important that we take that approach with the position we’re in and with what’s at stake.”

John is now doing ‘an alright job’ at Home Park, having steered his new charges to five wins and four draws from his 12 matches at the helm of the good ship Pilgrim.

“It’ll be a tough game, but we’re playing okay,” he said.

“I’ll give the lads the belief that we’re on the best run and that, hopefully, we can take the performances of late into the game – if we can do that, we’ll have a chance of getting something.”

Not since February/March 2011 have Argyle won three successive league games (Colchester United H, 2-1, Fallon, Bolasie; Sheffield Wednesday A, 4-2, N’Gala, Mason 2, Bolasie; Swindon Town, H, 1-0, Fallon) but they are on the cusp of emulating that sequence after beating Fleetwood 2-1 at Home Park and triumphing 2-0 at Southend in midweek.

Chesterfield’s season is all but over after they lost 2-1 at Torquay on Tuesday but John said: “They’re strong; they’re organised; they haven’t scored many goals but, at the same time, they haven’t conceded many.

“I know their players – one or two are still there from when I was. They’ve got a good team with some good players and I expected them to do a lot, lot better.”

John is eager that the weather does not intervene on resurgent Argyle’s plans for the weekend – or on his own.

“I want the game on,” he said. “It gives me a chance to go home and see the family!

“I want it on while we’re going okay; I want to go there and have a go.

“It’s lovely ground with lovely facilities. It’s one of the better grounds in the division. I’m looking forward to going back – there are a lot of nice people there and a lot of the staff who I worked with.”